Valve lifting tool



Dec. 27, 1960 F. GRIBBLE 2,965,958

VALVE LIFTING TOOL Filed May 24, 1957 INVENTOR. F 2 E D G- R I 6 BL E United States Patent VALVE LIFTING TOOL Fred Gribble, Watertown, S. Dak., assignor, by mesne gssignments, to Richard J. McDonnell, Sioux Falls,

. Dak.

Filed May 24, 1957, Ser. No. 661,355

2 Claims. (Cl. 29-217) This invention, a tool for lifting the valve of internal combustion engines of the type used in power lawn mowers, is adapted for facilitating maintenance, repair, and replacement operations of the valves of engines of this type.

Difficulty has been experienced in performing operations of the character described above, due to the fact that it is necessary to elevate the valve, together with the conventional retainer and the spring abutting the retainer, with a view to insertion or removal of the valve keeper.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a tool that will eliminate the difliculties hereinbefore experienced.

Among more particular objects are the following:

To design the tool so that it can be manufactured at very low cost; a

To so form the tool that the removal or replacement of a valve can be effected in a very short time and with maximum ease;

To permit use of the tool with valves that are incorporated in different makes of engines;

To effect the desired operation on the valve without the use of any other tools and without requirement of special skills; and

To perform the desired operations without danger of any damage to any component of the valve assembly and without requirement of modification or redesign of said assembly.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a valve lifting tool according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view therethrough showing the same in use during the lifting of a valve, the valve being shown in place in an engine only a portion of which is shown, the dotted lines showing the tool in a raised position during a second stage of the operation; and

Figure 3 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view substantially on line 33 of Figure 2.

The tool constituting the present invention includes a rigid, C-shaped, channeled frame 10 having an upper leg 11 extending horizontally from the bight of the frame and formed adjacent its distal end with an opening in which is fixedly engaged an internally threaded sleeve 12 projecting upwardly from leg 11 and formed at its lower end with an outwardly directed flange 13 hearing against the underside of the .leg, the sleeve being press-fitted in the opening.

A threaded stem 14 is threadedly engaged in the sleeve, for axial movement in a path parallel to the bight of the frame. The outer end of stem 14 is integral or otherwise rigid with a handle 16, and he preferred embodiment, intermediate its ends the stem has a diametrically extending opening 18 in which is engaged an oil-soaked, felt wick. On its lower end, stem 14 has a swiveled foot 20. I The lower leg 21 of the frame is formed at its distal end with lifting jaws 22 integral with'the body portion of the leg 21, and having coplanar ledge portions 23 lying in a plane normal to the axis of the threaded stem or screw 14.

An elongated, straight lifting plunger 24 has its length arranged parallel to the side Walls of the lower leg 21, said plunger being disposed medially between said side Walls. Plunger 24, at one end, has a flattened tip 25 which flares in a direction toward the extremity of the plunger, said tip 25 (see Figure 2) being disposed in a plane oblique to the length of the plunger, that is, the flattened tip declines in a direction forwardly from the body portion of the plunger, for a purpose to be made presently apparent.

Intermediate its ends, the plunger 24 is slidable in an opening formed in a transverse partition 26 provided in the leg 21 adjacent bight 10. Forwardly of the partition, there is extended diametrically through the plunger a cross pin 28, the extremities of which are disposed in substantially slidably contacting relation to the inner surfaces of the side walls of the leg 21. In this way, when the plunger is advanced from its normally retracted position shown in Figures 1 and 3, the pin 28 will hold the plunger against lateral displacement, and will guide it in a straight line during its advancing movement. Further, the pin 28 serves as a stop, limiting retraction of the plunger by engaging the partition 26 in the manner particularly well shown in Figure 3.

In the space between the bight of the frame and the partition 26, there is extended about the plunger a U- shaped spring clip 30, enclosing a felt wick 31, which is oil-soaked, so as to continuously oil the plunger.

In the lower end of the bight, there is provided a guide opening for the plunger, in which the plunger is slidable, with the plunger having an outer end portion projectingrearwardly from the bight as shown in Figures 1 and 5.v

Circumposed about the rearwardly projecting portion is a compression, coil spring 32, held under compression be-' engine. It will be understood, in this connection, that the valve stem 36 is not part of the present invention, and

instead constitutes part of a conventional valve assembly of a light internal combustion engine of the kind previously referred to briefly herein.

The valve stem at its upper end is rigid with thevalve head 34, and loosely receiving the lower portion of the stem 36 is a disc-shaped valve retainer 38, a spring 40 being held under cornpression between theretainer 38 and the adjacent portion of the block 41. 4 Designated at 42 is a conventional valve keeper of the C-type. The invention can be used to equal advantage in insertion or removal of a pin-type valve keeper, however, as will be made clearly apparent hereinafter.

In use, one holds the bight of frame 10 with four fingers of the hand, and pushes the plunger pin forwardly 1against the restraint of spring 32, with the palm of the and.

The plunger, at its tip, is adapted to move into the plane of the ledge portions 23, in the recess 35, and to this end, may have a slightly loose fit within the guide openings of partition 26 and the bight of the frame. As a result, and assuming that the valve keeper 42 has previously been removed for the purpose of repair or replacement of thev valve assembly, and assuming further 31 that the valve spring 40 has forced the retainer 38d'ownwardly so that it rests on the; bottom of the valve chamber, the tip 25 will. start to move-under the retainer 38 when the plunger is advanced. The ledge portions 23, it may be noted from Figure 2, will at this time be, flat upon the bottom surface of the valve chamber.

With the tip of the plunger 24 under the retainer 38, the entire tool is shifted toward the valve, that is, horizontally to the left-in Figure 2. Now, the ledge portions 23 will begin to move under the retainer 38 which has been cammed upwardly by the inclined top surface of the tip 25 to an extent such as to locate the retainer slightly above the common plane of the ledge portions 23, as clearly shown in Figure 2.

As soon as the jaws or ledge portions have begun to move under the retainer 38, one releases the pressure exerted against plunger by the palm of the hand. The spring 32, expanding, will now retract the plunger and will disengage the same from the keeper. The jaws are now pushed fully under the retainer, to the Figure 3 position with the plunger now retracted completely beyond the recess 35.

As a next step, a stem 14 is threaded downwardly, and is rotated with the foot 20 in engagement with the valve head 34. The result will be that the lifting frame will be raised bodily, as for example to the dotted line position of Figure 2. This will of course cause the retainer 38 to be raised, the retainer 38 sliding upwardly along the stem 36 of the valve with valve spring 40 compressing as necessary.

With the retainer elevated, one is now free to insert or remove a keeper, and the keeper is installed, whether it be of the pin type or C-type. If a pin type keeper is being used, a pair of needle nose pliers, or their equivalent, may be used for inserting the pin type keeper. To remove a pin type valve keeper, one would utilize a suitable tool to push the same out of the stem.

A G-type keeper may be inserted by the use of a flat inserter tool, on which a keeper may be loosely supported and temporarily held in place by grease, the tool having a notch matching that of the C-type keeper, so that the keeper can be inserted about the valve stem and subsequently engaged by the retainer.

On threading of the screw 14 upwardly, the frame will be lowered once again, until ultimately the retainer is engaged with the keeper, after which the deviceis re moved completely.

It has been found that a tool formed as illustrated and described facilitates the insertion or removal of keepers to such an extent as to permit a valve to'be removed or. replaced in' as short a time as approximately 30 seconds. Thus, a problem which has presented'considerable difficulties, in respect to maintenance. and repair operations on valves of the typeshown in Figure 2, is solved by the use of theme].

It is believed clear that the invention is not neces sarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to benecessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and de- 4 scribed; since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles (if operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A tool for elevating a retainer on the stem of a valve of an internal combustion engine, comprising: a frame having a pair of opposed ends, a valve-engaging screw threaded in one end of said frame; said frame at its other end including jaws engageable under said retainer; and means reciprocable on said other end of said frame over and between said jaws and transversely of said frame and screw, said last-named means having a cam surface thereon for engagement under said retainer to lift said retainer towards said.valve, said frame being shiftable towards saidstem to permit said jaws to be inserted under said retainer after said. retainer has been raised by said last named means, said last-named means comprising a spring-restrained plunger having a flattened tip providing the retainer-engaging cam surface, said jaws being spaced apart and said tip being disposed to enter the space between said jaws, said jaws being disposed in a common plane, and said tip being movable into said plane to engage under said retainer.

2. A tool for shifting a retainer axially of the stem of a valve of an internal combustion engine, said valve having a head at one end, said tool comprising a substantially C- shaped frame including a bight and legs extending horizontally from said bight, a screw. threadedly engaged inone, of said legs for movement in a path parallel to the length of said bight, said screw including a swiveled foot at one end for engagement with said valve head, said bight adjacent the other leg of said frame having an' opening extending transversely theretfirough, a partition fixedly secured to and extending transversely of said other leg of said frame, said' partition having an opening therein aligned with said opening formed in said bight, a spring-restrained plunger extending through said openings and being reciprocable therein, said plunger including a cam surface at one end thereof oblique to the path of movement of said plunger, said other leg being formed with spaced jaws adjacent the free end thereof, said cam end of said plunger'being movable into the space between said jawsagainst the restraint of its. spring for original engagement under said retainer to lift the same above said jaws whereby to permit said jaws to be inserted beneath said retainer and upon withdrawal of said plunger to transfer said retainer to said jaws, said retainer being moved axially of said stem by said jaws on the threading of said screw in one direction in said one leg of said frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,214,572 Mertz Feb. 6, 1917 1,320,269 Pettyet a1. Oct. 28, 1919 1,468,258 Caddin Sept. 18, 1923 1,530,302 Cook Mar. 17, 1925 

